When I purchased my M3 both dealers would not let me test drive one either. Since I already had an E90 I did not make that big of a deal but it does suck when they will not let you test drive a car. One dealer told me I can test any car but an M.

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When I purchased my M3 both dealers would not let me test drive one either. Since I already had an E90 I did not make that big of a deal but it does suck when they will not let you test drive a car. One dealer told me I can test any car but an M.

i can understand if the m3 is new and has close to 0 miles on it.

But the one I was interested in has 40k miles.

I made an appointment to come in and see it too. So that was a bummer.

If you currently own a BMW I feel it's insulting to not be allowed to test drive whatever you want. If I were a CA I would be more concerned about an M3 test drive if you were a Prius owner. That person is obviously wasting your time. And if the dealer is worried about damage well, in order to make an omelet you have to break a few eggs. Sorry, you sell cars.

I just thought it was because i'm 28 and guys my age can't afford an m3?

Been looking elsewhere for an m3 with CPO.

Really sucks because weatherford bmw is literally 1/2 mile from where I live.

Probably more than half of M3 owners are under 30 lol...
But, I guess if the service department is good then you could buy the car there...you only have to deal with the sales guys once..unless there is something wrong with the car they don't want you to know about.

I agree with you. The one I wanted to drive was a new one and they had no used ones on the lot.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kdphan

i can understand if the m3 is new and has close to 0 miles on it.

But the one I was interested in has 40k miles.

I made an appointment to come in and see it too. So that was a bummer.

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I went to my local dealer and they didn't want to let me test drive an M they had on the lot. He said, and I quote, "no one test drives an M, they just buy them because this is an M3." I burst out laughing and told the guy that I just wrapped test drives with the S5 and C63, and there is no way in hell I am going to buy a car without driving it first. He looked at me for a second and went to get the keys. I do get it though, I am sure there are lots of people that just want to drive the car with no interest in buying. At the end of the day, the guy wasn't very nice and pricing was way too high. So, I am buying from a different dealer.

Same thing happened to me when I wanted to test drive a Subaru STi. The guy says I have to be serious, which means I have to put down a deposit first. That was the last time I thought of buying an STi. He said the exact same thing: "no one test drives an STi, they just buy them."

The M3 I just bought is a CPO, and I was allowed to test drive it. Your dealership/salesperson must be real tight about this, or just arrogant.

Would you class it as a 'big' dealership or just a smaller one? The same thing happens here in Calgary, at BMW Gallery I wasn't allowed a test drive but at BMW Calgary they have a test drive version available for every single car. I've been in to their garage where they keep them and a whole load of other modded BMW's (no idea who they belong to, assuming they were in storage), that was a beautiful sight!

Go to a Carmax that has an M3. Many around here have them. They'll let you test drive all you want. That's what I did piror to getting mine, mostly because the one I did test drive at another dealer was DCT and I wanted to feel what the 6MT was like prior to committing to it.

Yeah thats odd. I have bought a couple cars from big BMW dealers here in the PNW and never test drove them because I honestly didnt care since they were both CPO and still under factory warranty and maintenance. Some dealers know that you are serious while others don't want kids test driving them with no interest or funding for the purchase. Infact I am getting rid of my E92 M3 this week and its used but not my cup of tea. I already contacted another dealer where my next car is an they were like sure you can test drive anything we have and we have a couple Porsche 911s.... So some know you are serious and some don't think you can afford it.

It also helps when you drive up in a car more expensive than an M3. lol

About 9 months ago when I was in the market for an M I drove over 50 miles to look at and drive a 2004 e46 M3. They asked to run my credit before I drove it. I explained I was already pre-approved through my credit union and did not want to ding my credit and if I decided to purchase an e46 I would most likely be paying cash anyways. Still woundn't let me drive it.

When my buddy was in the market for a WRX the first dealer we went to (one over 75 miles away that happened to have the color he wanted) wouldn't let us test drive. Do they think I drive hundreds of miles for sport in hopes of a test drive in a shitbox Subaru?

Yeah thats odd. I have bought a couple cars from big BMW dealers here in the PNW and never test drove them because I honestly didnt care since they were both CPO and still under factory warranty and maintenance. Some dealers know that you are serious while others don't want kids test driving them with no interest or funding for the purchase. Infact I am getting rid of my E92 M3 this week and its used but not my cup of tea. I already contacted another dealer where my next car is an they were like sure you can test drive anything we have and we have a couple Porsche 911s.... So some know you are serious and some don't think you can afford it.

It also helps when you drive up in a car more expensive than an M3. lol

Seems like i'll have to gather a few m3post members and bring them with me to a bmw dealership.

I think part of the reason they don't allow it is that M buyers are picky and the minute they allow someone to test drive an M the car is instantly worth less money because many of us picky sons o' bitches won't then buy the car or will demand a big discount.

If I went to a dealership to buy an M3, if they had one that had been test driven I would personally either order one new or expect a significant discount because you know people beat the sh&t out of the car.

A large dealership may have an M available to test drive and not care whether it devalues the car but a small to mid sized dealership may have a real problem with this. I don't like it but I do understand it. However, on a used M3, there is zero excuse to not allow a test drive to a legitimate customer.

When I lived in Houston the BMW dealers had demo M3's that you could drive (and I had no problem driving one at the age of 24) and they made you drive the car hard. I visited two shops, both of them had one M3 that could be driven, but the others were off limits.
Funny story - during my visit to the second dealership (about 6 months after the first) I was on my test drive along a quiet road off of the highway. There happened to be a younger woman jogging along the road. The salesman had me accelerate to about 60 mph of so, take my hands off of the steering wheel and then slam the brakes. The car stopped like a champ but the woman who was jogging freaked out, jumped a fence and ran across a field away from us! The salesman's face lost all color and he looked like he was going to be sick. We all felt really bad but it was just a coincidence!